President Trump is co-champion of a 2018 tournament at the Trump International Golf Club, even though he never participated in the event.
Ted Virtue, 58, originally held the 2018 championship to himself, but became co-champion when Trump said he would have won if he were able to play.
After Virtue won, Trump told him, “the only reason you won is because I couldn’t play,” according to Golf.com. Trump proposed a nine-hole challenge to settle it, after saying the demands of his job as president made the tournament impossible, even though Trump visited the golf club 20 times in 2018.
Virtue, who is the CEO of New York-based investment firm MidOcean Partners, agreed to Trump’s proposal. Trump won the nine-hole playoff, but ultimately said he and Virtue would be co-champions.
On Trump’s plaque in the Trump International Golf Club locker room, it says he was the champion in the 1999, 2001, and 2009 tournaments, and the 2012 and 2013 senior champion. The most recent addition now says that Trump is the 2018 men’s club champion.
